Limitless Word
and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he himself has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”
Matthew 14:2 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptizer. He is risen from the dead. That is why these powers work in him.”
  • KJV And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.
  • BSB and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”
  • NKJV and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.”
  • NLT he said to his advisers, “This must be John the Baptist raised from the dead! That is why he can do such miracles.”

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Herod fears that Jesus is John the Baptist risen from the dead. A guilty conscience haunts the man who killed God's prophet.

Overview

Herod concludes that Jesus must be John the Baptist raised to life, whose powers explain the miracles. His superstitious dread reveals a conscience burdened by the murder he had ordered. The verse exposes the inner torment of unrepentant guilt and prepares Matthew's readers for the full account of John's death that follows.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 4

  • Matt 16:14They said, “Some say John the Baptizer, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”
  • John 10:41Many came to him. They said, “John indeed did no sign, but everything that John said about this man is true.”
  • Mark 8:28They told him, “John the Baptizer, and others say Elijah, but others: one of the prophets.”
  • Matt 11:11Most certainly I tell you, among those who are born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptizer; yet he who is least in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Matthew videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Matthew 14:2YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MatthewMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'

How Matthew 14:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.